Monday, May 11, 2009

"What did you expect?" A plot, maybe, not just some Raj-y styled mystical eastern carbonated wisdom? This reminds me of the cringingly bad bits of the song in Lagaan that I call "Memsaab's Love Theme" (properly, the English parts of "O Rey Chhori," sung by my beloved Vasundhara Das) gone horribly, horribly wrong (-er).

Thalia - That's pretty much what I thought too. It made me shudder all over. I really dislike Nicole Kidman anyway, but I don't think someone with better acting skills could have done anything more with this. The setup is ridiculous and offensive and stupid.

anon - Yep!

JJC - Yeah! At first I thought "Hmm, what's this?" and by the end just "Yech."

As a white freckly Australian, I have to say I too found the role Nicole Kidman plays in this ad really offensive. Had she done something other than flounce around being almost bioluminescent white maybe it would not have been so bad - But there was no attempt to show the western woman as having any appreciation for or recognition of India or her lovely friends, it was just about her being adored. And I have no idea why anyone would be midway through tearing their own dress off and walking towards Arjun Rampal and stop for a fizzy drink. In a bathroom. Just so stupid and annoying and offensive. I hope Arjun and Rubina made some serious money out of it.

shell - Say it anyway! Good idea re: palette cleanser. I should go watch Abhishek in the motorola ads.

memsaab - OF COURSE. Your theme is BRILLIANT! And yes, this is definitely worse than Lagaan's horrible musical moments.

Pessimisissimo - Glad to hear you say that - I too wondered if it was trying to be tongue-in-cheek - something, ANYTHING, other than as stupid as it was - but it was just so vague and silly that it could have succeeded at such a goal. Or any goal.

Hi people,Come off it! It's just an advert!! AND don't we all agree that Bollywood often stoops to that advert-like level?Maybe I say that because I like Nicole Kidman (and Schweppes!), but...love NEway

my other filmi projects

Bong Along - a blog on vintage Bengali movies co-written by Indie Quill and me (and perhaps a few very friendly appearances by other friends as well).

Masala Zindabad - the podcast by Indie Quill and me, often featuring other writers and fans as guests. Masala Zindabad is an affectionate and thoughtful look at the broad range of themes that define Bollywood and make Bollywood defy definition. Available at iTunes.

Mysterious Order of the Skeleton Suit - the Agents of M.O.S.S. are a shadowy confederation of like-minded writers, broadcasters, creators, and jetsetters who have banded together in a bold mission to bring international intrigue and pop entertainment to the masses. Can anyone stand in the way of their diabolical schemes?

pragmatics

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